Baytic, Ej Marie M.

Psych 1-1
1. Meaning of History

The short version is that the term history has evolved from an
ancient Greek verb that means “to know,” says the Oxford English
Dictionary’s Philip Durkin. The Greek word historia originally meant
inquiry, the act of seeking knowledge, as well as the knowledge that
results from inquiry. And from there it’s a short jump to the accounts
of events that a person might put together from making inquiries —
what we might call stories.

"History is the witness that testifies the passing of time. It

illuminates reality, vitalizes memory, provides guidance of daily life
and brings us tidings of antiquity" (Cicero). In this sense, history
is unlike any other academic subject. Its essence is to understand the
evolution as well as the changing of ideas through time.

"History is a form of inquiry which is never prescriptive or

rigidly predictive about the impact of systems of events" (Nasson,
2009), the usefulness of history is not only that it constantly offers
new ways of viewing and understanding the grip of the past: it is also
a means of generating the confidence about, and absorption, of
critical knowledge, to produce a changing consciousness.

2. Historicity of text

The Blackwell Dictionary of Western Philosophy defines historicism

as denoting the feature of our human situation by which we are located
in specific, concrete, temporal and historical circumstances. For
Wilhelm Dilthey, historicity identifies human beings as unique and
concrete historical beings.

According to Louis Montrose in Professing the Renaissance: The

Poetics and Politics of Culture, historicity of text refers to the
cultural specificity and social embedment of all modes of writing.

3. Historiography

Historiography according to R. Vann, is the writing of history,

especially the writing of history based on the critical examination of
sources, the selection of particular details from the authentic
materials in those sources, and the synthesis of those details into a
narrative that stands the test of critical examination.
 The term historiography also refers to the theory and history of
historical writing.

4. Philosophy of History

Philosophy of History (or Historiosophy) is an area of philosophy

concerning the eventual significance, if any, of human history and
asks if there is any design, purpose, directive, principle, or
finality in the processes of human history.

5. Relationship of History to other branches of social sciences

•History and Economics:

History is also closely related to Economics. As the activities

of a man in society are very closely related with the economic
matters, the historian of any period must possess at least a
rudimentary knowledge of the economics. In fact, the economic
history of any period is an important branch of history and its
understanding is absolutely essential for the proper
understanding of history of any period.

•History and Sociology:

History and sociology are intimately related and a number of

sociologists like Auguste Comte are also important figure in the
development of historical studies. Karl Marx was also a great
historian and sociologist. Both History and Sociology are
concerned with the study of man in society and differed only
with regard to their approach.

•History and Political Science:

Prof. Seeley summed up the relationship between history and

political science beautifully that,
“History without political science has no fruit and political
science without history has no root.”
A historian is not merely concerned with the tracing of the
history of the political process by a narration of the episodes.
But he has to learn the nature of fundamental political
principles and basic forms of political institution.

•History and Psychology:

History and Psychology are also closely linked. A historian must

have to show some psychological insights while making an
analysis of the motive and actions of men and societies.
 Historian work would be mere fiction unless he uses the
discoveries of modern psychology.

6. Distinction between Primary and Secondary Sources

A primary source provides direct or firsthand evidence about an

event, object, person, or work of art. Primary sources include
historical and legal documents, eyewitness accounts, and results of
experiments, statistical data, pieces of creative writing, audio and
video recordings, speeches, and art objects. In the natural and social
sciences, primary sources are often empirical studies—research where
an experiment was performed or a direct observation was made. The
results of empirical studies are typically found in scholarly articles
or papers delivered at conferences. While secondary sources describe,
discuss, interpret, comment upon, analyze, evaluate, summarize, and
process primary sources. Secondary source materials can be articles in
newspapers or popular magazines, book or movie reviews, or articles
found in scholarly journals that discuss or evaluate someone else's
original research.

References:

Nasson, W. R. (2009). World Civilizations And History Of Human

Development. United Kingdom: Encyclopedia of Life Support Systems
(EOLSS).

Aggarwal, M. (n.d.). Relationship of History with other Sciences |

Study of History. Retrieved August 6, 2018, from
http://www.historydiscussion.net/history/relationship-of-history-with-
other-sciences-study-of-history/638

Mambrol, N. (2016, October 17). The Textuality of History and the

Historicity of Texts. Retrieved August 6, 2018, from
https://literariness.org/2016/10/17/the-textuality-of-history-and-the-
historicity-of-texts/

Primary and Secondary Sources. (n.d.). Retrieved August 7, 2018, from

Ithaca College Library: https://library.ithaca.edu/sp/subjects/primary

Standler, R. (2011). What is History and Why is History Important?

Retrieved August 2018

Steinmetz, K. (2017, June 23). This is where the word History comes
from. Retrieved August 6, 2018, from http://time.com/4824551/history-
word-origins/

Vann, R. (n.d.). Historiography. Retrieved August 7, 2018, from

https://www.britannica.com/topic/historiography